Arctic Institute of North America awarded $3.4 million for northern research facility
Kluane Lake Research StationThe University of Calgary’s Arctic Institute of North America has been awarded $3.4 million to upgrade its Kluane Lake Research Station (KLRS) as part of the federal government’s plan to invest in key northern research facilities.
The announcement, made Monday by Chuck Strahl, Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, is part of the federal government’s strategy to strengthen the North by investing in research, housing, and social and economic development.
“The station is world-class in terms of the science conducted there and it is world-class in terms of the publications it generates. But the physical infrastructure is in an advanced state of disrepair, not because of neglect, but because of the harsh climate conditions,” says Benoît Beauchamp, executive director of the Arctic Institute.
Since 1961, the station has been heavily used by researchers from a wide variety of disciplines.
“Pick your field, it’s there,” says Beauchamp citing a long list that includes geology, geography, glaciology, zoology, botany, high-altitude physiology, and anthropology.
The station provides an entry point to the icefield ranges of the St. Elias Mountains and it is this unique location that appeals to such a diverse group of researchers. The base station is located at an elevation close to sea level. Yet within minutes, researchers can fly to the tops of some of the highest mountains in Canada. Between the two extremes lie dozens of unique ecosystems.
Infrastructure funds will be used to increase sleeping space, rebuild laboratories, kitchen and dining facilities, and purchase green energy technologies. The monies will also help improve the station’s communication technologies.
“This will allow us to address the needs of a whole new generation of researchers who have different technological needs than the previous cohort,” says Beauchamp.
The announcement has been greeted with enthusiasm by researchers familiar with the station. Dr. Marc Poulin, an Arctic Institute Research Associate and U of C professor of medicine and kinesiology, toured the station last summer to assess the facilities. Poulin would like to start a major research program at KLRS.
“The Arctic Institute has a track record of providing excellent technical support for high altitude physiology, which is what we are proposing to do,” says Poulin, who studies how the human body adapts to low levels of oxygen.
Construction at Kluane Lake will begin this summer.
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April 1, 2009